Tomorrow
by Master Jesse
Summary: .:One-Shot:. Steve remembers this day more than any other, but tomorrow will come and all will be fine.


Disclaimer: Do not own

Title: Tomorrow

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He opened his eyes. His breath caught in his throat. With a slow exhale he glanced around. The sun was barely peeking over the edge of the cityscape. He threw the blankets off and pulled on his tan sweats. "It is 51 degrees outside. I suggest an change of clothing." He paused on his way to pull his normal white shirt from the floor. He glanced out the wide window. It was still hours before the sun would warm the air. "Thank you Jarvis." He whispered and pulled on a loose black long-sleeve. His shoes were last and he stretched while walking to the elevator. The building was silent. It was too early for the day-walkers to be up and the night owls had likely just fallen asleep. His arm ached and he shifted around in the elevator. He nodded to the guard as he walked across the lobby. A smile was his reply. He hopped in place a few times before starting out the door. He jogged at a decent pace.

His mind started to wander when his body settled into it's rhythm. He had hated running before, now it was one of his favorite things to do. Sometimes he ran until his lungs ached and the feeling that somewhere in there he was still just that kid with asthma filled him. He missed his old self sometimes. Missed his simple life before the war. He stopped abruptly. He wouldn't let himself go there. His arm throbbed and he flexed his elbow. He knew where it was coming from, but refused to admit it. A black SUV pulled up next to him and an agent he had never seen before stepped out. "Director Fury wants you back at the tower." He nodded and started running back. He forced himself to focus on the sound of his feet hitting the ground and the city coming to life.

The tower was as lifeless as it had been when he'd left. He saw a very still Natasha sitting at the table next to a yawning Clint. Natasha's eyes narrowed on him briefly while he got a glass of water. Bruce walked in, quiet as ever. He took a chair across from the pair. He could hear Thor's voice booming from down the hall. Clint groaned and clutched his head. Coulson walked in before Thor, talking quietly to him. "Ah Rogers. Will you go get Stark? Jarvis won't let me in." He nodded. He shuffled down the stairs. The lights were all off in the lab. He knocked on the glass. "Mr. Stark is unavailable." He shrugged and pushed open the sliding door. It gave without much effort. The lights flicked on and Jarvis' voice chimed in. He tossed a shirt at Tony, who was cursing everything in existence. He pulled it on and Steve grabbed his elbow, forcing him out the door that slid shut after them. He smiled. Jarvis was a devious little program. Tony had stopped grumbling by the time they had reached the main floor. "Now that we're all here," Bruce started. Tony slid into the last chair next to Banner and leaned against the scientist. He stepped against the counter and relaxed slightly against it. They started talking, but he couldn't take his eyes off the pair before him. He remembered late nights and early school mornings with a warm head on his shoulder. His arm cried out and he massaged it slowly. He glanced up when he realized they had stopped talking. He caught looks from an amused Clint, a questioning Natasha and a blank Coulson. He blinked. "What did you say?" Bruce glanced back over Tony's head and he tried to force a smile on his face, all that happened was a slight twitch of lips. "Are you ok?" He nodded and forced himself to focus on what was going on now and not the memories haunting him.

After they finished he excused himself and raced up to his room. He heard the click of the lock and silently thanked Jarvis. There was no way he could deal with anybody right now. He needed to focus for the mission. Focus on the present. With the uniform wrapped around him, he slowly felt himself coming back together. He slid the mask on and his mind blanked of everything unnecessary to the task at hand.

Hours later Clint was messing with his bow across the room. Natasha was still at S.H.I.E.L.D. Thor was passed out on the kitchen floor surrounded by the feast he had insisted on making. Tony had disappeared with Bruce talking about some issues he was having with his latest suit. He sighed and let his head fall back. "Its ok to not be ok." He nodded, but didn't look up. He felt the couch dip and smiled. "I'm fine," he muttered focusing on the ceiling above him. Clint made a noise that seemed to say _"I know you're lying but I won't force you to admit anything." _He nodded against the back of the couch and they settled into the comfortable silence.

He stared into the never ending hole. It continued on and on. He was falling forever. He reached for the cold fingers below him, but they were forever out of his reach. The terrified expression on the face so close to his own brought a sob unbidden from his mouth. He reached again and felt fingers brush against his own. He scrambled for the fingers and finally locked his hand with his friend's. Suddenly he was pulled back like a chute opened above him and they were wrenched apart. "No!" He screamed as he woke.

Clint was standing a few feet away clutching his ribs. He blinked trying to bring his mind into the present. He heard footsteps and wiped his face. "Are you ok?" He asked when Clint sat down gingerly on the edge of the couch. "Might have broken a rib. Are you ok?" He winced. "I'll be fine tomorrow." He whispered. He looked at the soldier next to him. Everyone else walked into the room. He saw the worried looks and nodded. "Tomorrow will be fine," he whispered again, more to convince himself than anything else. Clint started talking before he could say anything. He looked at the group and knew that he was right. Tomorrow. If he could make it through the anniversary of the worst failure of his life then he could make it through anything. He watched as Bruce checked Clint's ribs and Tony went through poking each rib as hard as he could after Banner had checked to make sure Clint wasn't faking it. He couldn't help the smile that came to his face. He wouldn't fail again.

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A/N: Just something that popped in my head after reading way too many Avengers Fanfics back in May. Finally uploading it. Like it please let me know. Don't like. Eh. Don't care.


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